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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26569927">The Lost Boys</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/AttackOnNoah/pseuds/AttackOnNoah'>AttackOnNoah</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Manga &amp; Anime, Manga Spoilers, aot - Freeform, snk, warriors - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 10:47:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>16,562</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26569927</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/AttackOnNoah/pseuds/AttackOnNoah</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The mix of slapstick humor and the soul crushing horrors of this cruel and beautiful world that attack on titan fans deserve.<br/>***Major spoilers for season 2 of attack on titan + some minor spoilers for season 3 and the manga***</p><p>A funnier version of Bertholdt, Reiner, Marcel and Annie's journey to the wall. Plays up your favorite character traits of the warriors. Updated every Saturday at noon EST.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Bertolt Hoover/Annie Leonhart, Reiner Braun/Bertolt Hoover</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>26</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Marcel Has Got it All</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marcel is just a really great guy! As all the warriors set out for their long journey, he ends up carrying literally everything important for the mission too...</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Reiner Braun starred at the boy sitting opposite him. His usually messy dark hair was neatly combed upwards, and his dark cloak fit him well. He sat back in the little wooden chair without a care in the world. Marcel Galliard noticed Reiner watching him and flashed a broad smile with his perfect white teeth. Suddenly, Reiner saw the small concrete walls around him disappear leaving just him and Marcel sitting in a garden, with birds chirping all around them.</p><p>“Don’t worry about a thing, Reiner, I’ve got the whole operation under control.” Marcel’s voice was soothing. He spread his arms wide out as if he owned the garden, as if he owned the whole world. Reiner smiled. “I’ll make sure we all get to the wall safely.”</p><p>The door slammed. Instantly, Reiner was back in the dusty confines of the windowless room. Bertholdt, who had been pacing around on the other side of the room, leapt into the air and his head slammed against the ceiling. He dropped to his knees cradling his head in his gangly arms.</p><p>“Bert, are you alright?” Marcel leaned over to the left, placing his hands on Bertholdt’s shoulder. Reiner turned to the doorway to see Annie standing there, arms folded, glaring at Bertholdt as if he had been the one to hurt her. With the back half of her bleach blonde hair tied into a disheveled bun and the front half formed a row of uneven spikey bangs, even her haircut was scary. Reiner felt a lump growing in his throat.</p><p>“I’m okay,” Bertholdt whimpered. Marcel patted Bertholdt’s shoulder before drawing his hand back. Annie quickly sat down in the third chair in the room, while Bertholdt rocked back and forth on the hard floor. The other door sprang open and a middle aged man in white robes strode in carrying a briefcase imprinted with a small medical cross on it. He was a short, heavy man with a thin beard and a receding hairline. He glanced at them and swore under his breath.</p><p>“Of course, you are children. Why would I expect anything different from this government?” The doctor shook his head and placed the briefcase on a small stand by the door, opened it up to reveal a row of needles. He lifted one up. “Let’s get this over with.”</p><p>Bertholdt gasped. “This is the wrong room. We are the Warriors!”</p><p>“I know that, I’m just giving your traveling vaccines,” the doctor explained, waiving the needle in front of him. “Do want to live your full thirteen years or die of measles?”</p><p>Bertholdt watched the needle with wide eyes. He slowly took his hands off his head and cleared his throat. “Are you sure that’s not titan serum?”</p><p>“Am I sure? I’m a doctor! I’ve been doing this for years. I know the difference between an MMR vaccine and titan serum. Like I’d turn you into titans in the middle of this cramped room, that would kill…” The doctor turned to the syringe, before swallowing and looking closer at the case it came in. Reiner noticed the syringe had a purple tint to it.</p><p>“There’s nothing to worry about, Bert.” Marcel reached his arm out and patted Bertholdt’s shoulder. “It will just feel like a pinch and it’s over.” The doctor slipped the syringe back into the case and swallowed. When he spoke, his voice was a little higher. “One moment please.”</p><p>The doctor snapped the case shut and hurried into the next room. Annie raised her eyebrows, and Bertholdt let out another whimper. Marcel just laughed. “This is where all the titans are made. There must be so many of those needles lying around, it would be easy to pick the wrong one up,” Marcel said, smiling as he looked directly at Reiner. “I’m sure he’s a good doctor.”</p><p>That made sense to Reiner, and he took a deep breath, but Bertholdt still seemed uncomfortable. The doctor returned, and without a word, he began tugged Reiner’s sleeve up. It’s just a pinch, Reiner thought. The needle wedged into his vein, and he felt an explosion of pain. His eyes watered as the doctor pulled the needle out. Bertholdt turned away and covered his face, Annie just scoffed. Within a minute, all of them had been vaccinated, and after another minute, Bertholdt had stopped crying.</p><p>“One last thing.” The doctor held out large unmarked bottle. “These are iodine tablets. Paradis does not filter water like we do. Put one of these in a few minutes before drinking anything or else you will shit yourself for three days straight. There are enough tabs in there for a few months, so you better hope you exterminate humanity within the walls by then.”</p><p>The doctor chucked. Marcel reached forwards, taking the pill bottle and stowing it in his bag. He thanked the doctor before leading the warriors out of the room the way they came and up a flight of stairs where their commander waited for them. Theo Magath wore black combat boots and the light brown jacket of the Marleyan military uniform. His short black hair was shaved on the sides and stubble grew on his lip and chin. Reiner watched Magath put on a thin smile and give Marcel, Annie, and Bertholdt each a dutiful nod. As Reiner entered the room, Magath produced a lollypop.</p><p>“Here you go, Reiner,” the military officer’s grin broadened as he handed Reiner the candy. Reiner’s eyes widened and he took the lollypop. Bertholdt threw his hands up behind Magath’s back and glowered at him. Annie and Marcel seemed to take no note of the exchange. Suddenly, Magath’s face froze.</p><p>“Where is your pack, Reiner?” Reiner frowned. He looked up at the other warriors, all three wore their cloaks and carried a large pack with a blanket on top, but his shoulders were bare. He glanced behind him and heard Magath letting out a tired sigh.</p><p>“Yes, go get your bag, Reiner.”</p><p>Reiner took off back down the stairs, but not before tearing the lollypop rapper off. It was strawberry flavored, he noted. Over his shoulders he could hear Magath starting to describe the plan, but it was faint, and he wasn’t really listening. He would be back there in a moment anyways. Reiner reached the bottom of the stairs and looked both ways. Every corridor looked the same to him. Was it left, or right? Reiner thought. He blinked. Then it came to him. They had turned right to go up the stairs, so he turned right and opened the door to find himself in an unfamiliar room. He frowned and meandered around, turning a couple times. Pretty soon he couldn’t even find the stairs again, and his head started to hurt.</p><p>Reiner sucked on his lollypop and starred at the blank concrete wall, loosing track of how much time had passed. Everything felt surreal and not even the perfect blend of sugar and artificial strawberry flavoring could make it better. He glanced up hearing a muffled sound. The second time it sounded like his name. He started walking towards it, and after opening a door, bumped into Marcel, who was carrying his pack. Reiner grinned.</p><p>“There you are, Reiner,” Marcel said, gently. He handed Reiner his pack. “What were you doing? Make a wrong turn?”</p><p>The pack that had been so burdensome earlier now felt like nothing in his hands. Reiner’s eyes widened. He announced, “I got stronger!”</p><p>Marcel blinked. “Ok buddy, Reiner.”</p><p>Reiner followed Marcel through a small doorway leading out of the building, and he had to lower his hand to block the glare of the morning sun off the sea of golden sand in front of him. A thick metal door with an outer layer of concrete to disguise it hung open. Reiner glanced up at a ten meter tall wall that gently sloped away with a flat slab topping it to prevent climbing. He had never been on this side of the harbor wall. This was no longer Marleyan land. Annie, Bertholdt and an impatient Magath waited for him, and Marcel walked quickly to join them. This time the overseer of the warriors didn’t even look at Reiner.</p><p>“You all know the plan. Head out and keep a low profile until you make it to the walls,” Magath barked rubbing his hands together.</p><p>“I don’t know the plan,” Reiner said, his lollypop bounced to the side of his mouth as he spoke. He saw Annie rolling her eyes, Bertholdt shook his head, but Marcel just gave him a patient smile.</p><p>Magath replied, still without looking at Reiner. “That’s fine. Just follow Marcel. Watch out for titans, Survey Corps patrols, and everything will be alright.”</p><p>Magath turned sharply away and hauled the heavy door closed behind him. Reiner watched the spot where the door had closed. Had he not just watched it shut, there would be no way he could have identified the tiny outline of the door.</p><p>“Before we get too far,” Marcel said, his voice chipper as always. Reiner slowly turned his head to the leader of the warriors as he continued to speak. “Let’s make sure we have everything in our packs.”</p><p>Bertholdt nodded, and Reiner slung his pack off his shoulders. Not only did it feel light, it also crumpled when he moved it. Bertholdt frowned and asked, “What does Reiner have in his pack?”</p><p>“Reiner is carrying the spirit of the group,” Marcel said proudly, and hastily added to Reiner, “You don’t need to check your bag, I did it for you already.”</p><p>Reiner nodded and slung his pack back over his shoulders. Bertholdt looked outraged but said nothing. The other three warriors stood with their packs open in front of them. “Annie, I trusted you not to eat when you weren’t supposed to, so your carrying all the food,” Marcel said. “Is it there?”</p><p>“Yeah, it’s there,” Annie said, poking around in her pack before looking up. “Bertholdt, you are the biggest and strongest off all of us, so I had you carrying the water for us.” Marcel turned to Bertholdt.</p><p>“Trust me it’s all here,” Bertholdt grumbled. He looked over longingly at Reiner’s pack.</p><p>“And me, well I’ve got the rest!” Marcel said, beaming. He pulled out a brick from his bag and pulled an antenna out of it waiving it before the group. “Radio disguised as a brick to secretly report to Magath, our only map, our only compass, all our survivalist equipment, a pen that’s actually a knife, a pen that’s actually a bomb, Paradis money, our Paradis papers and a detailed backstory for all of us which. We should be sure to familiarize ourselves with that so we can blend in.”</p><p>“Oh. I was just going to talk ominously about our hometown,” Reiner said. “And how I want to go back to it.”</p><p>The rest of the warriors starred at him blankly. Marcel coughed. “Why don’t you read the backstory instead?”</p><p>“Okay,” Reiner nodded. I didn’t know there would be homework. “Ah and of course the iodine tables the doctor gave us!” Marcel pulled out the little bottle. “We don’t want to forget these! We’d all be sick for three days straight.”</p><p>Bertholdt shuddered and shook his head.</p><p>“But I’ve got it all!” Marcel said. “So, there’s nothing to worry about.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Hand of Ymir</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marcel asks for their goddess Ymir to protect the group, and put her hand over them. A different Ymir answers.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Before we left, I was praying to the god of all Eldians for protection,” Marcel said. Reiner just starred in front of him, trudging through the dunes. He was too tired to turn and make eye contact with Marcel. They had been marching for hours, but there was still no end to the sand. His feet dragged as they climbed over ridge, and sand had filled his boots again. Reiner was sick of stopping to empty them out and having Marcel or Bertholdt tie his laces back up. Bertholdt had fallen to the back of the warriors, weighed down from carrying their water. Annie stayed in front, scaling each sandy mound, and scouring the horizon. Her arms swung relaxed at her side as she walked, but her eyes darted around and locked onto the slightest movement. She watched each a tufted of sand like it were an enemy warship. For the first time he could remember, her presence made him feel safer.</p><p>“I prayed that Ymir would reach out and put her hand on us,” Marcel continued. “I figure we’ve got part of her. I have her jaw, Annie has her femininity, Bertholdt has her… size, and Reiner… well either way, we carry each carry a piece of Ymir with us, so if she would answer anyone’s prayers it would be ours.”</p><p>“I heard Ymir called a goddess…” Bertholdt called out from the back, pausing mid-sentence as he gasped for breath. “But I never thought to pray to her.”</p><p>Annie let out the strangest laugh Reiner had ever heard. It started short and high pitched, but as it continued it felt eerie. It occurred to Reiner he had never heard Annie laugh before. Her eyes never left the horizon as she replied, “If Ymir answered prayers, wouldn’t it be Eldia and not Marley in charge of things?”</p><p>Reiner looked to Marcel, hoping he would say something encouraging, but he just stopped walking and scratched his head. Behind them, Bertholdt dropped onto his knees, and slipped his pack off his bag.</p><p>“Oi, it’s pretty hot outside.” Bertholdt said, panting. “Do we want to take a water break?”</p><p>Marcel agreed and the warriors gathered around Bertholdt’s pack, each grabbing their own waterskin and taking a long draught from it, meanwhile an exhausted Bertholdt vocally encouraged the others to drink more. While Reiner drank, Marcel put his hand on his shoulder.</p><p>“Could we talk?” Marcel asked. Reiner nodded, cheeks bulging with water. Marcel led him along the sandy ridge and a few paces away from the rest of the group. Reiner swallowed and turned to his fellow warrior. His face looked serious, even solemn. “I have a confession to make, Reiner.”</p><p>“What is it?” Reiner asked, eyes widening.</p><p>“I am the reason you are the armored titan,” Marcel said. The words were heavy in his mouth, and Reiner frowned. <em>He had always wanted to be the armor titan, to be a warrior. It’s a great honor.</em> Marcel closed his eyes and shook his head. “I just wanted to protect my brother. But in doing that, I just put someone else in danger.”</p><p>“It’s alright, Marcel,” Reiner said, smiling at him. “You have nothing to feel bad about.”</p><p>“But I do,” Marcel said, looking down. “And that’s why I’m going to keep you safe Reiner. I’m going to keep all of us safe, I have to, but I’m the reason you are here in the first place. It’s a lot to explain now, but I will do everything in my power to protect you from danger… from danger that I put you in.”</p><p>Nothing Marcel said, made any sense, and Reiner’s gaze drifted away. Something caught his attention on the other side of the dune, it looked almost like a giant fingernail. A couple steps and he was over the dune, and he could see the whole hand. Even though the wrist was submerged it stood as tall as he was. His eyes widened. <em>This is the hand of Ymir that Marcel was praying about!</em></p><p>“I was so selfish, to choose Porco’s safety over yours, but I won’t be selfish anymore. I swear I’ll keep you safe, Reiner. As long as I draw breath,” Marcel continued, behind him.</p><p>Reiner reached out and touched the massive hand, barely listening to anything Marcel said. The hand was cold, and there was something ancient about it. A sudden flood or warmth rushed out from it, as if like he had lit a fire just by touching the hand.</p><p>“Everyone look! It’s the hand of Ymir!” Reiner yelled springing to his feet. As he jumped, he could see Bertholdt and Annie whirling around to face him. Marcel was already running towards him. Reiner’s jaw dropped as Marcel shoved him out of the way.</p><p>A moment later the giant hand picked up scooped Marcel up. <em>That’s a little rude to push me,</em> Reiner thought frowning. <em>Maybe it is fair. Afterall, he was the one who prayed for it.</em> A massive form loomed above Reiner, standing a few meters tall despite being hunched over hunched. Long wisps of black hair ran down its face, and its mouth opened to expose a terrifying row of jagged teeth. Reiner swallowed. <em>Ymir looks scary.</em></p><p>Bertholdt grabbed Reiner’s hand and tugged him away, terror all over his face. “That’s not Ymir, Reiner! It’s a titan!”</p><p>“Oh.” Reiner blinked. Bertholdt tugged on his hand again, pulling him to his feet.</p><p>“Transform!” Annie yelled up at Marcel, who was being pulled closer to the titan’s maw.</p><p>“I can’t!” Marcel thrashed in the titan’s grip, kicking wildly. The titan had pinned both his arms to his side. Bertholdt put both hands on Reiner’s dragging him a few feet away from the titan, but Reiner resisted.</p><p>“Hide your consciousness!” Reiner called out. Bertholdt stopped pulling on him.</p><p>“What?” Marcel yelled back. The titan bit down on Marcel’s head, crushing it instantly.</p><p>“Move your consciousness away from the titan’s mouth,” Reiner said, feeble. “You… you might be able to escape being eaten.”</p><p>The titan shoved the rest of Marcel into its mouth. This time when Bertholdt pulled, Reiner ran with him. There was an explosion of yellow light behind him. Both boys turned to see Annie mid-transformation.</p><p>“What are you doing?” Bertholdt said, waving his hands wildly.</p><p>Reiner took a few more paces before stopping. He saw blood in Annie’s eyes, her hand was in her mouth and her titan legs were already forming, lifting her into the sky. She yelled out, “I’m getting the jaw titan back!”</p><p>As smoke enveloped Annie, the pure titan that had eaten Marco backed away, bounding off into the distance. A titan fifteen meters tall stood where Annie had been just a moment ago. The female titan, a mesh of pale stretched skin and red muscles, slammed her fist into the ground kicking sand up. As she lunged after the fleeing titan, she let out a deafening rage fueled war cry.</p><p>Reiner pumped his fist into the air. “She’s going to avenge Marcel!”</p><p>Bertholdt only fell to his knees. “No! No! No!”</p><p>There was a rumbling all around them, and Reiner felt his stomach churning. Even Annie, in the middle of her bloodcurdling charge froze and turn back to face him and Bertholdt. A disturbance appeared on the horizon, like a dust storm approaching from all sides. A titan burst out of the sand in front of them. And then another, this one was taller than Annie’s titan.</p><p>“Why did you scream?” Bertholdt leaped into the air pointing both his hands at Annie. Her hands fell to her sides. Reiner’s brow furrowed. <em>We all make mistakes, Annie.</em> Bertholdt held his hand up, bringing it closer to his mouth. “I’m so sorry, Reiner. I’m so sorry, Annie. I never thought I would have to nuke both my crushes just to survive.”</p><p>“What?” Reiner said.</p><p>Tears streamed down Bertholdt’s face as titan’s closed around them. Annie punched the closest one in the face sending it reeling backwards, but Reiner could already see more than a dozen nearby. Annie took a few precious seconds to shake her head vigorously and pointed at Reiner. Bertholdt paused.</p><p>“I can run through them, and carry you both to safety,” Reiner announced. Bertholdt winced and looked at Reiner and then back at the titans. Annie nodded.</p><p>“If that doesn’t work, I can still always nuke later,” Bertholdt reluctantly agreed, putting his hand away. The female titan slammed into the largest titan, it took all her strength just to keep it from overpowering her, and her whole body shook as it sunk its teeth into her shoulder. Reiner looked down at his own hand. He had never been proud of his hand. It was short and his fingers were stubby compared to the other children. <em>But there was no hand of Ymir to protect us, the hand of Reiner is all we have.</em></p><p>Reiner dug his teeth into his hand.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Go Go Power Reiner!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A pure titan ate Marcel, Annie transformed and screamed... drawing the entire island worth of titans to their position! Bertholdt is on the verge of going nuclear, leaving Reiner as the last hope for their mission. Can he deliver his friends to safety?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>There was a blinding flash of light, and Reiner Braun felt an explosion of intense heat and electricity as the armored titan formed around him. The whole world went dark as fast as it had light up, and his whole body was rooted in place by extra muscles and tendons latched on to his limbs and face burrowing themselves his skin. A humid cavern of flesh had completely enveloped his physical body and the next moment he opened his <em>other</em> eyes, looking out on the world from fifteen meters in the air.</p><p>By the time the armored titan had fully formed, the female titan had been knocked on to the ground by three titans who started to consume her. One gnawed at her left arm, another her right leg, and the largest of the three pinned her down while biting deeply into her neck.</p><p>“Hurry, Reiner!” Bertholdt called in a panic. His hand was not far from his own mouth, and tears streaming down his face.</p><p>Reiner lurched forwards, his body letting out a loud grinding sound like a stone statue being dragged across concrete. The armored titan was heavy and unresponsive, so he had to strain all of his muscles to get himself into motion. With his left hand, he scooped up Bertholdt, who yelped, and he drew back his right hand before throwing all of his weight into a punch levied against the neck of the massive titan. The hardened fist backed by the inertia of the armored titan crushed the lightweight neck releasing a torrent of steam and sending the titan off Annie and flying backwards. As it bounced, the titan’s head was only loosely attached to its body the whole thing was collapsed into itself releasing a thick column of steam. It wasn’t getting up.</p><p><em>Thank you, Marcel. For making me a warrior and giving me the power to protect my friends.</em> The thoughts hung like a black cloud in Reiner’s head. <em>I am the one who should be sorry. I couldn’t protect you.</em></p><p>Another titan charged through the column of steam and Reiner swung his head over to the female titan. Her neck had been ripped open, exposing Annie’s human body, which was completely covered in in a silver-blue crystal cocoon. Inside the crystal, blood swirled around in the clear liquid, dissipating until the whole crystal had turned cloudy and pink. But before the crystal became opaque, Reiner saw Annie’s left arm had been bitten clean off.</p><p>“No!” Bertholdt called out. “We can’t get her out without Marcel’s titan. She’s going to be in there for years!”</p><p>Reiner kicked one of the swarming titan’s away before ripping the crystal out of the female titan’s neck with his teeth. He felt an enormous weight straining against him as a titan grabbed hold of his shoulder. He picked the female titan’s body waiving it into the air for all the titans to see, before throwing it into the mass of titan’s in front of him and running the other direction, with a titan still hitching a ride on his shoulders. The titans ignored the steaming hollow titan body that Annie had occupied, and Reiner heard a thunderous rumbling of giant footsteps behind him.</p><p>Reiner felt a pair of giant arms clutching his right leg, and he staggered, almost going down. Another titan ran directly at them, ten meters tall with a bald head and bulging eyes, its arms spread wide. Reiner stuck out his arm, and stiff armed it into the sand, but it slowed him down, and he tripped over a three meter all one, almost wiping out again.</p><p>“If you go down, I’m going nuclear!” Bertholdt said in a panic. “I’m sorry, Reiner!”</p><p><em>If only I could break the crystal,</em> Reiner thought. <em>Annie would know what to do. </em>He ground his teeth on the edges of the crystal only to crack a tooth against it. Giant chunks that looked more like stone than enamel fell out of his mouth and clattered against his chest. Two more titans piled onto Reiner’s back, slowing him down to a crawl. He could see three smaller ones approaching along with another ten meter titan, and there were so many more lumbering behind him.</p><p>“Hit them with the crystal!” Bertholdt said. “I don’t want to have to nuke you, Reiner!”</p><p>Reiner dropped the crystal out of his mouth and caught it with his right hand. With a roar, he slammed it into hand of the largest titan that clung to him, losing himself from the brunt of the burden, allowing him to lurch forwards. He shoved the crystal into the neck of the ten meter titan in front of him and plowed through the others. As they reached up to pull him down, they loosed titans from his back. Reiner swung the crystal around and stabbed the final titan riding him in the eye, and he staggered as it fell off. He was now light enough to be maneuverable, but he had to catch his balance before navigating the maze of charging titans.</p><p>He threw his weight to the left evading a titan that dove after him, another one with a big round face waved its arms wildly in his direction as it sprinted directly at him. Reiner stuff the crystal into its neck, holding his arm stiff and sending to titan to the ground. As he kept running, he felt his arm almost yanked out of his socket as he tried to pull the crystal in. Baby faced titan was clinging on to it, and he started to drag the titan.</p><p>Bertholdt yelped and Reiner felt his friend tucking his head into his hand. “Don’t let go of Annie!”</p><p>Reiner felt himself slowing down. A tall slim titan with grey hair and wrinkles on his cheek barreled down on them. He pulled with all his might and the crystal came free of the baby titan, and his own hands. It flew into the air and sailed across the armored titan’s body. Reiner knew what he had to do. He tossed Bertholdt into the air and lunged for the crystal in his left hand. Bertholdt’s screaming upside down face sailed passed in front of him. Reiner left hand snagged Annie’s crystal and he stuck his right shoulder out. Bertholdt bounced off his shoulder and flew forwards before landing flat on his stomach inside his armored palm. Bertholdt let out a feeble groan, and Reiner closed his palm around his comrade.</p><p>Reiner’s eyes widened as two titans stood in front of him, stationary one shorter and fatter, the other tall and gangly, both crouched to receive him. The shorter one stared at him with a gleam in his eyes, and the taller one’s mouth hung open tongue flailing as it seemed to be panting. Reiner shuddered. <em>Two royal blood titans…</em> Reiner lowered pulled the remaining warriors close to his chest and barreled into them and locked his jaw. <em>But I am a Warrior!</em></p><p>Reiner slammed into the shorter titan sending both him and it reeling away from each other. The taller titan sidestepped him at the last moment and swung a punch behind him. The impact of the fist rattled his armor, and Reiner could feel his own body vibrating as well as the titan form around him. Steam erupted from both sides of his neck blurring his vision, but the armor around his nape held. Reiner broke into a grin as he left the abnormals in the dust.</p><p>“<strong><em>Kai m dee armo tean</em></strong>!” Reiner roared, proudly. He could hardly understand his own grating titan voice. <em>I am the armored titan,</em> he thought. He had reached his full speed and none of the other titans could catch him. The titans in front of him seemed to be thinning out. He opened his hand and Bertholdt’s head quickly popped up and scoured the area.</p><p>“Go Reiner! Go!” Bertholdt pumped his fist. He sniffled as tears of joy formed in his eyes. “You did it! I always knew you could.”</p><p>Reiner kept his eyes trained on the horizon, shifting to avoid any incoming titans. All the sprinting and titan collisions had started to wear at his armor, he didn’t know how long he could keep his form up at this pace. He glanced behind him and saw what looked like a sandstorm of titans, there were hundreds if not thousands of them that were slowly falling further behind him. The skinnier abnormal titan was still close by, within thirty meters and was keeping pace with him, arms swinging at its sides like a natural born runner, tongue still flapping in the wind.</p><p>Reiner turned his head forwards and pushed his titan form to sustain the pace. His legs were growing heavy and steam poured out of his mouth. <em>I can’t slow down now.</em></p><p>“What are we going to do about Annie?” Bertholdt asked. “Without Marcel’s titan to free her there’s nothing that can break her out. If we die, she could be stuck in there forever!”</p><p>Reiner’s eyes widened as he looked down at her crystal again. He saw Annie floating in the crystal in a cloudy sea of blood. <em>She had been bitten by a titan. Can she heal in there? Could she die in there?</em> Reiner’s stomach dropped. He just wanted to get Annie out and take them all to safety.</p><p>Suddenly, Reiner heard loud footsteps, which startled him. It took him a moment to realize they were his own. They had left the soft sand and were onto more solid ground. It was so dry that cracks spiderwebbed in between patches of grass.</p><p>“Look at those trees! They are massive,” Bertholdt called out, pointing off to the right. Reiner could see a forest on a distance hilltop, the tallest trees looked much taller than him, perhaps twice his height. “If we make it there, we could hide out in the trees until the titans leave.”</p><p>Reiner started turning his lumbering titan to the right. He had never pushed his titan this far and he could see his legs already steaming beneath him.</p><p>“You’ve got this Reiner! We’ll be there in just a minute. I’m so proud of you. You deserved the armored titan more than anyone else,” Bertholdt said.</p><p><em>I don’t know, Bert. But I’ll give it my all, for you,</em> Reiner thought. He had reached the base of the hill, the forest was so close now, but as Reiner began to climb the slope the weight of his titan slowed him. On his left the gangly abnormal titan was making its way into his view, it twirled around so it was running backwards alongside him, without slowing down. The titan punched the air like it was practicing for a fight.</p><p>Bertholdt yelped. “Stay strong, Reiner, we are so close!”</p><p>He knew Bertholdt had tried to sound encouraging, but Reiner could only hear the panic. <em>I need Annie right now. She was always stronger than me, she could protect Bertholdt…</em> Reiner could feel tears start to form in his human face as his he felt his titan form breaking down in front of him. The punching titan practiced a roundhouse kick and landed perfectly, only falling slightly behind Reiner in the process. It immediately making the distance up, this time it looked ready to fight again.</p><p><em>You’re wrong, Bert. Someone else should have had the titan. Someone else could have protected you and Annie. I fail at everything…</em> Reiner thought. A memory came back to the resigned Reiner…</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Reiner stood on the deck of a battleship, in front of him a row of tall smokestacks spewed a massive black cloud onto the bright blue sky. The wooden planks creaked on the beneath his feet as he walked towards the port side railing. Salty air filled his lungs, and his eyes focused on the Marleyan coastline. Small fishing ships floating on by a beautiful beach, and Reiner grinned.</p><p>He took his last step before reaching the side of the boat, and his left toe slammed into a piece of metal that jutted out from the ground. Reiner started to fall over but caught himself on the railing. His eyes watered from the pain. <em>You are so weak,</em> he thought.</p><p>As soon as had the thought formed in his mind, there was the blinding flash of light, the taste of ozone, that heat, light and electricity. He had only felt it few times before, yet he knew exactly what was happening and with horror he knew it was too late to stop. His transformation blew the deck apart and blasted chucks of the steel hull into the ocean. The leg of the armored titan punched through the deck below him and he flipped over, plunging face first into the ocean.</p><p><em>This is how I die,</em> Reiner thought. <em>I’m going to die from a stubbed toe, and never see my father again. </em>The water was mirky and he couldn’t see the bottom, but there was something strange. The water was rushing… up not down. He felt his feet popping out of the water before his body flipped. The gaseous titan flesh was just buoyant enough to lift his heavy shell, but very little of the armored titan stuck out above the water, and as he bobbed up and down and waves crashed over his face. Reiner looked up at a sky he never thought he’d see again with a smile.</p><p>The relief did not last long, as soon as his vision cleared, he spotted Magath and the other warriors standing on the deck looking down on him. Water leaked into the battleship and Magath surveyed it all, furious.</p><p>“I should have known the moment I heard something explode it would have been you Reiner,” Magath yelled. “You are so dumb, that I’ve seen you get lost in your own home. You are so thick that your skull is the only thing beside the jaw titan that could crack Annie’s crystal. You’d literally believe anything I tell you. You believed your dad would come back if you became a warrior! He probably left because you’re so dense. It was funny at first, but now it’s just sad.”</p><p>Reiner couldn’t do anything but bob up and down, the water splashing over his titan mouth. He tasted salt in his own mouth. <em>My titan must be leaking a little ocean water in,</em> he thought as he felt his body trembling uncontrollably. Magath swore vehemently and spin around. The warriors just stared down at him. He could see Bertholdt, Annie, Marcel and Porco standing on the deck, stunned. Zeke stood beside Magath frowning at the officer, but he remained silent.</p><p>“If the battleship sinks, I’m feeding you to Porco!” Magath yelled over his shoulder as he stormed away. Marcel’s eyes widened and Porco started to smile.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p><em>I’ve always been a failure,</em> Reiner thought. He watched the boxing titan closing in on him. He scoffed at himself bitterly. <em>I remember believing Magath even as he called my gullible, I am so dumb. I remember thinking at least I could break Annie’s crystal with my head…</em></p><p>Reiner blinked. He looked down at Annie’s crystal. <em>Annie could save Bertholdt and the mission. I can’t. There’s nothing to lose.</em> Reiner slammed the crystal into his forehead. There was an explosion of armor fragments and he felt his armor shattering to pieces. His vision blurred as steam filled his face. As sight returned, he could make out a startled Annie gasping for air and coughing up the blood laced crystal fluid.</p><p>“I can’t believe that worked! Then again, it made from the same material your armor and the crystal… you’re a genius, Reiner!” Bertholdt cried out. “Annie? Are you alright?”</p><p>She looked startled, but the bite wound on her shoulder was gone and she wasted no time standing up. She pointed an unsteady hand towards the titan and began to speak even before she was done coughing.</p><p>“That kick he practiced… he’s going do to it now. Catch it! You have to catch his foot.”</p><p>The boxing titan was getting into the same stance he did before he practiced his kicking. Annie was right. He dumped Annie on top of Bertholdt to free up a hand and reached up as the titan swung his foot in their direction. He grabbed the foot midair and pushed it away. The abnormal titan wiped out.</p><p>“Yes!” Annie yelled, clambering off Bertholdt. “Perfect.”</p><p>“Owww,” Bertholdt said, interrupting his own enthusiastic exclamation as Annie accidentally stepped a crystal shard into his stomach.</p><p>“There’s a tree at nine o’clock with a branch that should be safe. Do you think you can make it there?” Annie called out.</p><p>Reiner saw the tree. He was stumbling along now, less than half his top speed and slowing fast. It took all he had just to keep his titan in motion. Titan footsteps behind him had gotten closer. He had not lost the hordes of titans, just gotten slightly ahead of them. But Reiner nodded back to Annie.</p><p>He lifted his hand as high as it would go, the armor plating on his shoulder cracked as he strained to reach a little higher. It was enough. Annie boosted Bertholdt into the tree and he pulled her up onto the branch as soon as he was up.</p><p>“Now, listen Reiner,” Annie said. But her voice wavered. He lowered his arm and turned around. The boxing titan stood before him, fists at the ready, mud smeared along the left side of it face, tongue began flapping through the air again.</p><p>The titan’s first punch was aimed at his right eye. Reiner’s arms were lethargic and couldn’t block in time, and armor on the top of his head had all crumbled when he headbutted the crystal. His eye and the whole right side of his face exploded, and the armored titan staggered back, his knee hitting the ground. The abnormal titan bowed to an imaginary audience. More titans were catching up, Reiner could hear them stomping their way into the forest.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Reiner could feel the Marcel’s titan floating behind him. He heard the jaws scraping against his armor as Marcel chewed through the nape of Reiner’s neck. It wasn’t long before he was free and started to swim back to the rope dangled off the side of the battleship. Soaking wet and hands shaking, titan steam still radiated from his skin. He could see frustrated crewmen glancing over to him shaking their heads or cursing. Reiner felt his cheeks flush with shame.</p><p>“Are you alright?” Marcel asked, putting his hand on Reiner’s shoulders while kicking to stay afloat. Reiner nodded and slowly started to climb the rope. At the top of the rope, he could see the back of Porco’s head, hair slicked back and perfect. He leaned against the side of the battleship arms with his crossed seeming to be completely oblivious to the existence of the climbing Reiner.</p><p>Reiner hauled himself over onto the deck, he slipped on the thin steel and fell flat on his back. Above him, Porco shook his head and spoke without even looking at Reiner. “Do you still think you deserve that titan, Reiner?”</p><p>As shooting pains ran across his back, Reiner felt his body shaking. He muttered, “No.” But Porco had already begun to storm away. Marcel stood over Reiner, extending a hand to pull Reiner up again. He found himself sobbing as he accepted Marcel’s help, yet again.</p><p>“Why are you…?” Reiner began saying but Marcel cut him off.</p><p>“Don’t listen to any of that, alright? Not Magath, and certainly not my brother, he’s not himself right now. It is hard when you first get your titan. Accidental transformations are common early on. I even attacked some Marleyan soldiers in one of my first times as the jaw titan. But you didn’t do that, did you Reiner? You are loyal,” Marcel smiled his most reassuring smile ever. Reiner nodded slowly and wiped a tear off his cheek. “By the way, do you know what caused you to shift?”</p><p>“I stubbed my toe,” Reiner said. He sniffled and took a shaking breath. “The pain made me feel weak… and I wished I was stronger. That was my goal.”</p><p>“I see.” Marcel frowned. “But you are strong, Reiner. You aren’t the quickest kid I know, but you might be the strongest. And that’s what makes you perfect for the armored titan. You will get the hang of it, I promise.”</p><p>Marcel gave Reiner a patient smile. Reiner nodded and dried his eyes, before smiling back.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>The titan landed a spinning kick on the armored titan’s chest smashing through the weakened armor in his chest. As Reiner flew backwards and smashed into a tree, the armor on his back crumbled as well. Steam was rushing out of his titan, but it wasn’t regenerating, only deflating. He collapsed onto the ground the whole world turned dark.</p><p>Reiner heard Annie’s muffled voice in the distance, but it was too faint. <em>I am strong. I rescued Annie, and protected Bertholdt. I did what I could.</em> Reiner smiled, as the rumbling footsteps of the boxing titan that bore down upon him.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. It's a Hard Knock Life</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Reiner miraculously saved Annie and Bertholdt from the onslaught of titans Annie accidentally loosed upon them, carrying them to a safe place in the treetops. However, the strain has left him unconscious, and fierce abnormal titan looks like he's about to take the armored titan. Annie and Bertholdt desperately try to protect their friend before it's too late.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Reiner!” Annie yelled, rising to her feet on the large tree branch. The armor titan slumped over, his body disappearing behind the tree trunk as he fell, but Annie had already seen most of his armor had broken to bits in the fight with the abnormal titan. Bertholdt turning away, head in his hands. She knew that he couldn’t stand to see Reiner get eaten and knew he also couldn’t do anything. <em>If Bertholdt transforms, he kills me,</em> Annie thought. <em>It’s all down to me now.</em></p><p>She hoped the abnormal titan would turn away from Reiner after he went down, hoped that it would shift its focus back to her, that her scream may still have held its attention. But instead the titan bore down on where the armored titan had fallen. Other titans poured into the forest, a few crowded around their tree and some other ones turned towards her, and as Annie looked up, she could see a few dozen more on their way in. She starred at the trunk of the tree; picturing Reiner’s defenseless body sprawled out on the other side. The abnormal titan would be almost upon it now. <em>He risked his life to save mine,</em> Annie thought. She knew what she had to do.</p><p>“Bertholdt!” she barked. “I’m going down to protect, Reiner. I’ll punch a tree if I need back up. That’s the signal for you to transform and help me clear them out.”</p><p>“Are you mad?” Bertholdt’s eyes shot up. “You’re going down there? You won’t be able to save Reiner. You’d just be giving up your own life! Can you even transform again?”</p><p>Annie laughed. “There’s only one way to find out.”</p><p>She leapt off the branch, bit her hand in mind air. The explosive transformation drowned out Bertholdt’s panicked cry. Her titan legs hit the ground moving, and in a second the female titan was upon the abnormal titan. It had turned to face her, and as the steam cleared from its face, she could see blood too. <em>Titan’s don’t bleed,</em> Annie thought with horror. <em>Am I too late?</em></p><p>Annie narrowed her eyes at the titan and swung hardened fist into bloody mouth of the abnormal titan. It landed flat on its back wriggling on the ground with its face caved in. She stomped her foot onto its neck, hoping to crush its nape from the other side, but the titan grabbed her leg, locking her in place. Titan footsteps were closing in on her from all sides.</p><p>She tried to shake her leg free but couldn’t. Annie felt a short titan grabbing on to her other leg and she kicked it away. She glanced around her and saw three more titans were closing in fast. <em>If only I had a weapon of some kind, a big stick or rock…</em> Annie thought. Her mind went to the Warhammer titan’s ability making his own weapons. She let the armor on her fists crack away and replaced it with long blades extending from between her fingers.</p><p>Annie sliced through one of the abnormal titan’s arms with the blades on her left hand and stabbed out the eyes of an approaching titan with her right hand. She kicked away the abnormal titan who flipped over onto its stomach and slashed the nape of its neck to bits with two rapid swipes of her claw-like blades. She dove in between two more titans, cutting their legs out from under them as she did to reach the body of the armored titan. <em>Please Reiner…</em> Annie thought. <em>Please be alive!</em></p><p>As she lifted Reiner’s smoldering titan body, more blood dripped out of the steaming whole in his neck. Through the steam she saw Reiner’s human body, or what was left of it. The head and shoulder had been bitten off, leaving her starring at a mangled ribcage. The armored titan dropped out of her hand and her mouth hung open. A heavyset titan stood in front of her with buck teeth, by the time Annie snapped back to reality, the titan dove on top of her knocking her onto the forest floor. Her head was pinned against a tree, and more titans were piling on top of her. The abnormal titan had fully evaporated but the other three titans she stabbed were picking themselves up.</p><p>Annie slammed her head into the tree behind her. <em>I need your help, Bert. </em>She drove her blades into the stomach of the titan that pinned her down, ripping it open. She wriggled a little bit more room for herself and hit the back of her head against the tree again, louder this time. She hardened the nape of her neck and kept sticking her blades into the titans on top of her, but as more titans arrived, she couldn’t hardly move, and the world had gone dark.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Bertholdt sat on the branch, hugging his legs. He faced the trunk of the tree, the direction he had last seen the female titan go. <em>Annie must be close to where Reiner is,</em> Bertholdt thought. <em>She’ll keep him safe.</em> But as more titans rushed in her direction, anxiety continued to eat away at his stomach.</p><p>From the other side of the tree he could hear stomping and thumping of titan combat. Steam began filled the forest like a fog, and Bertholdt could hear slashing sounds. He frowned. But while there were still the loud sounds of battle, he knew that Annie was still on her feet. So Bertholdt waited for her signal.</p><p>Beneath his branch, he noticed a baby-looking titan. Its head was half as tall as its body and when as it craned to stare up at him, the top heavy thing fell on the ground and struggled to climb back up. Bertholdt smiled. “That’s good. You wait right there.”</p><p>There was a loud thump, and Bertholdt sprang to his feet. His left foot slipped, and he had to grab the branch with both hands to stabilize himself. <em>Was that Annie’s signal?</em> Bertholdt wondered. <em>She said she’d ‘punch a tree’ if she needed help… or did she say, ‘punch this tree’. I can’t see her or any tree around her. How would I know if she punched a tree?</em></p><p>Bertholdt watched the nearby trees to see if any of them were shaking. He noticed the forest had gotten a lot quieter, there was only consistent thumping sounds of approaching titans. He frowned. <em>Titan footsteps would probably sound a lot like someone punching a tree</em>, Bertholdt thought with dismay.</p><p><em>Do I transform to be safe? </em>He looked at the tree in front of him and swallowed. A transformation in the tree could send tons of timber crashing down on Annie and Reiner. He looked down at the ground twenty meters beneath him. Bertholdt felt his legs trembling. He could picture Annie yelling at him for transforming when he shouldn’t have, just as well as he could picture her yelling at him for not transforming when he should have. Somehow that scared him more than a twenty meter fall or the titans below him.</p><p>Bertholdt’s heart raced and he took shallow breaths and placed his hands on his head. <em>It’s been quiet for too long! Annie, are you okay?</em></p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Pinned down in a pile of dozen titans all flailing around and gnashing at her, Annie could not contain her anger. She had waited for his transformation to clear the forest of titans… but it never came. <em>Where the fuck is that miserable waste of a titan power?</em> Annie seethed. <em>Ymir help Bertholdt if I get out of this alive!</em></p><p>Annie clawed at one of the titans on top of her, making small repeated stabs with all of her remaining strength. The pressure was so much that she could barely move, so she was just flicking her wrists back and forth, back and forth. Heat was pouring out from the titan pile and Annie felt like it she would pass out soon but kept clawing.</p><p>Suddenly the heavy-set titan, split in two, and titans on top of the pile began to cascade down around her. Annie felt the enormous weight on top of her melting away and she pulled herself out from the thrashing mass of titans. Once on her feet, she leapt out of the pile. Titan arms grappled her leg and she kicked them away. <em>Oi Bertholdt, </em>Annie thought as she picked up a five-meter titan by the neck and slammed him into the tree with all her might. Her blades dug clean through the neck and burrowed into the wood from the tree. <em>How’s <strong>that</strong> for a signal?</em></p><p>A feeble terrified scream carried faintly on the air and she saw Bertholdt sailing towards the ground in front of her. Annie tried to move her titan behind a tree, but her claws were stuck in the trunk. Her eyes widened and light from Bertholdt’s transformation turned her vision white, and the shockwave sent her flying through the air. She felt flames dancing across her titan body as she bounced off a few trees before coming to a halt.</p><p><em>I suppose I asked for it,</em> Annie thought, a bitter laugh on her tongue. She lay on the ground disoriented, left with nothing but ringing a painful ringing her ears. She was prepared to leave the scorched and spent female titan, and make her way out in her human form, but she started to hear a crackling sound above the ringing. Heat was radiating from all around her. Her vision had not yet returned, and she had collapsed in the middle of a growing forest fire.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Captain Erwin Smith looked out across the rolling grassy hillsides filled with green Survey Corps cloaks that fluttering behind their galloping riders. His eyes narrowed as he scanned the horizon. He could hardly believe there he hadn’t seen a single flair or titan all morning. <em>If there is a god, then they are looking out for us,</em> Erwin thought grinning broadly. From the corner of his eyes he could see a rider approaching him. He turned to see Hange Zoe, their messy dark brown hair being relentlessly tossed by the air.</p><p>“It’s been an incredibly lucky morning!” Erwin called out to Hange Zoe. They frowned.</p><p>“Lucky? What do you mean, captain? We haven’t seen a single titan!” Hange cried in despair. Erwin blinked. It was his turn to furrow his brows. <em>I don’t think I will every understand that soldier.</em></p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Annie, Are You Okay?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Annie wakes up in a forest fire! Previously, Annie watched Reiner be bitten in half. The remaining warriors need to regroup, find safety and decide what to do. Bertholdt rescues a charred armor titan, every sheet of armor broken off. Is there any way Reiner could recover from his injury? Tensions arise within the group when it comes to the warriors next steps.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Desperately, the female titan clambered to her feet, staggering blind through the forest fire, and almost immediately crashed into a tree. Reeling, Annie stopped to think. Through the cracking and raging fire, there was a consistent thudding, coming from the colossal titan. <em>Bertholdt was closer to the edge of the forest than me. </em>Annie turned around, trying to locate the sound, and started heading in her best guess direction, moving slowly, her hands in front of her head to feel for trees.</p><p>By the time she reached the edge of the tree line, her vision had returned enough to see the trees as darker blurs. Annie stumbled out into the open plains, gasping for air as she escaped the thickening black smoke. She shed her titan, letting the female titan collapse and steam carry away the body from around her.</p><p>As Annie got to her feet, her own feet, everything was sore. She could feel the bruises forming all across her body. Looking up she saw the colossal titan looming over her even as it kneeled over. Bertholdt set the armored titan down on the ground outside of the forest. Reiner’s titan was charred and blasted apart. She couldn’t see it well, but it almost looked like the nape had sealed up again.</p><p>The colossal titan rose to its full height and took a few steps away before collapsing into its own pillar of smoke. Annie watched the pillar of white steam right beside the massive black cloud rapidly spreading from the forest. The smoke from the fire would soon reach miles into the sky, and the air around her was quickly turning grey and tasted thickly of ash. <em>So much for secrecy.</em></p><p>Bertholdt appeared from the column of steam, and Annie tightened a fist. But Bertholdt paid no heed to her, he raced directly over to the armored titan. She felt her fist dissolving.</p><p>“Reiner!” Bertholdt called out. He banged on the nape of the armored titan’s neck. Ash from the burned exterior rubbed off on his hands. “Wake up, Reiner!”</p><p>“I’m sorry, Bertholdt,” Annie said, softly. Bertholdt turned around. She shook her head.</p><p>“What do you mean?”</p><p>“He’s gone, Bert,” Annie repeated. “Reiner’s gone.”</p><p>“No,” Bertholdt said. It was confident but not too forceful.</p><p>“Bertholdt, I saw his head bitten off!” Annie snapped. “He’s dead!”</p><p>“What?” Berthold frowned. “The titan body is still here, it’s even regenerating. I don’t know what you saw, but he’s still here. Right?”</p><p>Annie’s eyes widened. Steam was slowly coming off the armored titan, gradually replacing the blackened titan skin, and if that weren’t enough, the nape of his neck that had been bitten clean open was intact again. There titan forms had faded in seconds and yet here was the armored titan.</p><p>“I think you are right,” Annie thought, scratching her head. “But we need to get him out of there before more titans come.”</p><p>Annie turned around and saw her hardened blades laying in the grass and walked over to one. It was almost as tall as she was. <em>How the hell did you survive that, Reiner?</em> Annie thought, as she grabbed the blade in both hands.</p><p>“Bertholdt, give me a hand with this?”</p><p>The armor had not regenerated, and together they were able to drive the blade into Reiner’s nape. With a little force they could slice the nape open, and their small knives were enough hack Reiner the rest of the way out. They set the wounded warrior face on the grass.</p><p>Bertholdt yelped as he got a good look at their companion, and Annie couldn’t blame him. Sure enough, his body was complete, but his shirt only came up to the middle of his ribcage. The upper part of his body was completely hairless, no body hair, no light brown head of hair and perhaps strangest of all, no eyebrows. Patches of skin had yet to regrow exposing his cheek muscles and some cartilage on his nose. Bertholdt turned away.</p><p>“Let’s just…” Annie began. She shuddered and had to look away too. “Let’s let him rest for a little.”</p><p>“I agree!” Bertholdt said, nodding hastily.</p><p>Annie scoured the horizon for any signs of titans. None immerged from the burning forest and it looked like all the titans from the direction they came had probably chased them into the forest. It seemed like they would be safe. Reiner let out a sharp gasp and started to sit up. Annie and Bertholdt turned to him quickly. His face was mostly regenerated, only his hair remained missing and his skin seemed puffy and swollen.</p><p>“Reiner! I’m so glad to see you recovering.” Bertholdt gave Reiner a hand up. “How do you feel?”</p><p>“Never better,” Reiner beamed. He raised a triumphant hand and immediately lost his balance. Bertholdt steadied him. Annie narrowed her eyes and Reiner swallowed as she met his gaze.</p><p>“How did you survive that?” she asked, sharply.</p><p>“I transferred my consciousness,” Reiner said. The top half of his shirt flopped down exposing his belly button. “And you’ll never guess where I put it.”</p><p>Annie kicked Reiner in the balls. He went down so fast, he nearly dragged Bertholdt with him. “What the hell does that mean? How the hell does that work? I thought you were dead!”</p><p>“Oooh, right in the consciousness,” Reiner groaned.</p><p>“Hey, let’s all relax a little,” Bertholdt said. Annie turned to look at him and he immediately began apologizing. “I’m sorry, I just mean, that was crazy, but we are all okay… I mean not Marcel… but the three of us. I was worried you would be stuck in a crystal for years, Annie, but Reiner got you out. I was worried Reiner would be dead but he… uh…”</p><p>“I transferred my consciousness,” Reiner said. His voice was soft as his strength had yet to return. He still on his knees holding his groin.</p><p>“Right. And I was worried I would hit the ground or blow someone up when I transformed,” Bertholdt said. “It frankly feels like a miracle any of us made it out of that alive.”</p><p>Annie nodded. Her fists unclenched. “If either of you tells Magath or anyone else about this, you are dead. I don’t want anyone to know I sent half the titans on the island after us.”</p><p>“We all make mistakes, Annie,” Reiner whispered. He rose to his feet, tenderly, legs still close together. “I may have woken the titan that ate, Marcel.”</p><p>“Yeah, well you’re Reiner,” Annie said. Reiner blinked twice and then slowly smiled. She didn’t know or care how he had chosen to interpret her insult.</p><p>“We can make up another story,” Bertholdt suggested. He began moving his hands dramatically. “A wild titan came out of nowhere, grabbed Marcel, there was nothing we could have done!”</p><p>“Perfect.” Annie turned around and started trudging away from the forest fire.</p><p>“Marcel saved me. They deserve to know that about him,” Reiner added. “The last thing he did was sacrifice himself for me. Porco deserves to know.”</p><p>“Alright,” Annie replied. “Just so long as you leave all this mess out of it, I don’t care what you say.”</p><p>She heard Bertholdt behind her jogging to catch up.</p><p>“Say, Annie… where are you headed?” he asked.</p><p>Annie rolled her eyes and turned back to Bertholdt. “I’m going home. Marcel is dead, we have no food or water. The way the last few hours have gone, I’m surprised any of us are still alive. Paradise my ass, this island is miserable!”</p><p>“Wait!”</p><p>It was Reiner’s voice. Bertholdt gasped and turned around. Annie just closed her eyes and shook her head, but Reiner continued speaking.</p><p>“The mission is not over yet. Not while we still draw breath,” Reiner said. Annie took a deep breath, opened her eyes, and turned to face him. “Bertholdt breaks down the outer gate, Reiner smashes the inner gate, you bring a swarm of titans so they can’t recover. I’m not even sure what Marcel was supposed to do… But anyways, we can still do the mission. We are warriors!”</p><p>“We don’t know what we are doing,” Annie snapped. “Marcel was our leader. Now we’re just three kids with no equipment trying to take down an entire civilization.”</p><p>“Marcel died for this mission.” Reiner looked down. Annie swallowed. Bertholdt turned away and put his hands on his head. “Marcel died for me, to get me right here. If we go back… then that’s all gone, but if we stay here, he is still with us. He carried us this far. If we need a leader, I can take on Marcel’s job. It’s my fault he’s dead anyways.”</p><p>Annie tightened her jaw and turned over to Bertholdt. “Bertholdt?”</p><p>“I think he’s right, Annie,” Bertholdt said.</p><p>“Alright, Reiner,” Annie said, trying to keep her tone level, but it picked up intensity as she continued speaking. “You’re our leader, so lead us. I’ll follow you. Which way do we go?”</p><p>Annie starred down Reiner. Their new leader glanced up and quickly turned away from her gaze.</p><p>“Uh…” Reiner began. He fiddled with his thumbs before turning to face her with confidence. “We go to the walls!”</p><p>“Right. You said that already,” Annie replied, dryly. “Lead us. Which direction is it? I’ll follow you.”</p><p>Reiner nodded, and looked around him for a minute. He started to scratch his chin. Annie could hear his stomach rumbling. Reiner turned to Bertholdt. “Bert, do you know which direction the walls are?”</p><p>Bertholdt frowned. “I’m not sure. If I had Marcel’s map, I could figure it out, but I got all turned around as we ran away.”</p><p>Annie smiled as Reiner started to pace around repeating the phrase ‘What would Marcel do?’ over and over again. Bertholdt shimmied closer to Annie.</p><p>“Do you know what direction the walls are?” Bertholdt asked. His eyes darted over to Reiner. Annie nodded, and his eyes widened. Bertholdt coughed and placed his hands together. “Then you should tell him!”</p><p>“What would Marcel do?” Reiner said, louder this time.</p><p>“Do you actually want to go to the walls?” Annie asked, turning to face Bertholdt. He opened his mouth and then shut it again without a sound.</p><p>“I’ve got it!” Reiner announced, large grin on his face. Annie’s face fell. “Marcel would know which direction to go in.”</p><p>Annie and Bertholdt exchanged glances before they turned back to the enthusiastic Reiner. They both nodded.</p><p>“And?” Bertholdt asked.</p><p>Reiner’s enthusiasm faded quickly. He rubbed his hands together and looked around him. “Right…”</p><p>Annie felt herself relaxing more each second. <em>There’s no way he actually knows.</em> After another minute had passed, Reiner confidently pointed to the right.</p><p>“There! That’s the best path to the walls.” Reiner nodded to himself. He awkwardly put his hands on his hips as he looked at Annie and Bertholdt, waiting for their reactions.</p><p>“Since I’m not particularly keen on dying of thirst in the middle of this godforsaken island with a couple idiots,” Annie said. “Why don’t I just point you in the right direction?”</p><p>“Oh okay,” Reiner replied, a little discouraged. After a moment, he added, “Thank you.”</p><p>“It’s this way.” Annie pointed straight ahead of her, and Reiner bounded ahead to ostensibly leading the group. She started walking after him and noticed Bertholdt lagging behind. She watched him tapped his index fingers together and glancing ahead anxiously at Reiner, before turning away. It wasn’t long before he caught up with her.</p><p>“Annie,” Bertholdt said.</p><p>“Yes?”</p><p>“This is the direction you were originally walking.”</p><p>“That’s true,” Annie said.</p><p>“Right.” Berthold laughed nervously. “And you said you were going home when you started going that way.”</p><p>“That’s also true,” Annie replied.</p><p>“So… is this path going to take us home?” Bertholdt asked.</p><p>“Brilliant. You’re almost as clever as Reiner,” Annie said. Bertholdt opened his mouth to say something, but Annie narrowed her cold eyes at him. “If you tell Reiner, I will kill you.”</p><p>Bertholdt gulped and stopped in his tracks. Annie walked past him, and a few moments later, she heard his footsteps, reluctantly following her and Reiner. <em>I am going home, Bertholdt. And no one is going to stop me. Not you, not Reiner, not even Magath.</em></p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. The Wall</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>They make it to the wall! Or a wall. It looks a little short. Annie's plan to lead them back home seems to have worked, Bertholdt kept his mouth shut, and Reiner suspects nothing. That is until the plan almost gets them all eaten again.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Reiner trudged on, his feet dragging through the dunes, the setting sun casting an intense glare into his eyes. Behind him, he could hear Bertholdt kicking tufts of sand. <em>This is the craziest terrain I’ve ever seen. Where does it go from sand to a forest and back to sand again?</em> Reiner thought, scratching his chin. He kept his eyes cast down so the glare from the sun.</p><p>Suddenly, Reiner found himself in the shade. He turned his head up to see the base of a wall and relief washed over his face. <em>We made it!</em> As he looked a little higher, he found himself frowning. Wall Maria was supposed to be fifty meters tall, and this was much shorter. Furthermore, Magath and a group of soldiers in Marleyan uniforms. Reiner narrowed his eyes. <em>Did they invade Wall Maria without telling us?</em></p><p>“What…” Bertholdt took step back and looking around himself nervously. Reiner smiled, pleased to see that he wasn’t the only one confused. “How did we end up back here? Annie, do you know what happened?”</p><p><em>Right, this is the harbor we started from, </em>Reiner thought. <em>That makes more sense.</em></p><p>“Yeah, must have made a wrong turn,” Annie replied. Her arms were crossed, and she glared at Bertholdt for a moment. After a long pause she added, “Ooops.”</p><p>Reiner nodded patiently. “It’s alright, Annie. I get turned around easily too.”</p><p>Annie narrowed her eyes at him. Reiner could see Bertholdt turning away in the corner of his view. Annie’s stare was interrupted as Magath called out to him.</p><p>“What the hell are you doing here? What were you doing playing in the sand all day?” Magath howled down to them. “Wait, where’s Marcel? Oh shit.”</p><p>“Sir?”</p><p>A soldier next to Magath spoke, trying to get the officer’s attention. Reiner could barely make him out, but he stood next to a prisoner that knelt on edge of the wall. There was an urgency to his voice, that caused Reiner to frown.</p><p>“Not now.” Magath waived his hand dismissively. He leaned over the wall and continued speaking to the warriors. “Well, what happened?”</p><p>“We were attacked by a titan, sir. It came out of nowhere. We had no time to react or transform. Marcel stepped in my place and…” Reiner began. Tears grew in his eyes.</p><p>“Sir!” The soldier yelled. Reiner looked up and could no longer see the soldier, or any soldiers above the line of the wall, only Magath and a single prisoner. This time the prisoner was standing up and visibly panicking. Magath wheeled around, just in time to watch the prisoner transform into a titan.</p><p>Reiner’s eyes widened. Magath’s lips traced out half a dozen expletives, but any words he spoke were all washed out by the deafening blast. A ten meter tall, lumbering titan stood on top of the wall, teetering on the edge of it.</p><p>“I had already injected him by the time I saw the warriors… I didn’t want to endanger the titan program,” the soldier continued, desperately. The titan swung its head around, facing away from Reiner into the heart of the harbor.</p><p>Magath pulled out a pistol and started firing at the titan’s face, jumping up and down and yelling wildly. “Idiots!”</p><p>The titan turned to face Magath, lunging for him with a colossal hand. Reiner yelled for him to look out, but he was already diving off the wall, rolling down the steep side before crashing into the sand. Reiner rushed to help him to his feet but Magath simply pushed him.</p><p>“Move!” Magath yelled. “Away!”</p><p>Reiner looked up to see the titan standing on the wall, falling straight down on them. Magath fled, desperately dragging Reiner through the sand and out of the path of the descending giant.</p><p>“Could someone transform into a titan?” their commander howled. Reiner had barely picked himself onto his feet when he heard the crashing of the titan’s body hitting the sand not a foot behind him.</p><p>“We are too tired,” Bertholdt said. “I don’t know if any of us can transform.”</p><p>Reiner bit his hand. His teeth drew blood, and it hurt so bad his eyes watered, but no titan formed around him, and he shook his head slowly.</p><p>Magath halted and raised a trembling finger as he looked between Bertholdt, Reiner and Annie. “Did any of you want to mention that before I lured the titan down here for you to fight?”</p><p>The titan pulled itself back to full height, looming over the four of them. Annie also bit her hand, with no luck. Bertholdt was about to try but Magath hastily stopped him. The middle aged officer let out a tired sigh and turned back to face the titan with stone faced resolve.</p><p>“Attention!” Magath said. Three soldier’s heads poked over the wall. “Toss the damn blighter who made this titan over the wall as bait!”</p><p>The middle soldier’s face fell, and his comrades grabbed him. Reiner’s face turned cold. The titan took another step forward, and the screaming soldier bounced off the back of the titan’s neck, crashing into the ground. The titan paused and slowly turned around. Magath took off in a flash, running straight for the hidden door in the wall. The warriors were right behind him.</p><p>Reiner glanced back at the soldier and immediately regretted it. The sickening crunch was more than enough to know what happened. Magath pounded furiously on the door, and it sprung open. A soldier just a few years older than them held it open and ushered them in. Even after they were all inside, Reiner felt his heart pounding.</p><p>“Well, that could have been a disaster! That one titan could have wiped out our entire base,” Magath said. He cleared his throat and folded his hands awkwardly. “Anyways, what were you saying? You were telling me what happened to Marcel?”</p><p>“I thought it was the hand of Ymir,” Reiner blurted. “It’s my fault.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“We were attacked by a titan with no warning, it ate Marcel,” Bertholdt said.</p><p>“Reiner woke the damn thing, didn’t he?” Magath sighed, piecing their story together. “I knew I should have just had Zeke yeet you to the wall.”</p><p>The warriors fell silent, and after a moment Magath cleared his throat and spoke again. “Well? What are you going to do about it?”</p><p>Reiner blinked and looked up at Magath with confusion. “What do you mean? You are our commander.”</p><p>“We failed the mission,” Annie said sharply. “It’s over, sir.”</p><p>“If I tell you to call off the mission, it’s on my ass, you understand,” Magath explained. “If I tell you to go on and we lose another titan, do you know whose ass that’s also on?”</p><p>“Whose ass, sir?” Reiner asked.</p><p>“That would also be on my ass, Reiner.” Magath clapped his hands together. “With your leader dead, you all can terminate the mission on your own, if you agree to unanimously. That way failure would be Reiner’s fault, for poking a damn titan hand.”</p><p>“It is my fault. And that’s why…” Reiner began.</p><p>“We want to end the mission,” Annie interjected. “We lost one titan, already. Our leader died. It’s over.”</p><p>“Do you all feel that way?” Magath asked. Bertholdt looked unsure. Reiner shook his head.</p><p>“No, sir,” Reiner replied. “I failed, and that cost Marcel his life. But I’m not ready to give up on the mission. I’d be ready to go back out there, and stick to the mission, even if I’m the last warrior.”</p><p>“Great. The mission continues.” Magath shrugged. “I don’t care one way or the other. It’s your decision, so whatever happens next is your fault. Your asses are on the line.”</p><p>Annie turned to Reiner. She was usually impossible for him to read, but this look was transparent. She cracked her knuckles. <em>This face means its unanimous if I’m dead.</em> Reiner swallowed.</p><p>“Well get something to eat and some rest. I expect you to head out to the walls tomorrow on double time.” Magath started walking away.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Reiner Braun felt his body shaking inside the giant fist with each step the titan carrying him took. He glanced up to see focused face of the female titan, as she jogged through the sand, her titan legs could outrun a horse. Sharing Annie’s left hand with him, Bertholdt wrapped his arm fully around one of Annie’s massive fingers for stability.</p><p>“This was a great idea, Bertholdt!” Reiner said, smiling through the glare from the rising sun. They were moving so fast he could feel the wind catch his hair.</p><p>“Thanks!” Bertholdt replied. Reiner noticed a hint of pink creeping into his cheeks.</p><p>“I have another idea,” Reiner said.</p><p>“What is it?”</p><p>“Stand up on Annie’s middle finger,” Reiner instructed. Bertholdt looked somewhat concerned. Reiner put his hand on his shoulders, and added, “I’ve got you.”</p><p>Bertholdt put one foot and then the other up onto Annie’s middle finger, elevating most of his body over the side of the female titan’s hand. Reiner stepped up behind Bertholdt, taking a slightly more secure position on Annie’s ring finger, and holding on to Bertholdt’s waist.</p><p>“Now spread your arms out in the shape of a T,” Reiner said. Bertholdt lifted his hands off Annie’s index finger, leaning on Reiner for all his support. He could feel the joy spreading over Bertholdt’s body as he relaxed more.</p><p>“I’m flying!” Bertholdt called out. Reiner smiled.</p><p>The hand suddenly lurched, sending them both falling backwards into Annie’s palm. Reiner glanced up at Annie who glared at them. For once, Reiner glared back at her. <em>He’s mine!</em> She just rolled her eyes and shook her head.</p><p>The female titan continued running and before long they had left the sandy dunes behind them. Reiner could see a black pillar that climbed to the heavens as yesterday’s forest fire raged on. He swallowed. <em>Hopefully the fire hasn’t drawn attention from the within the walls!</em> But as soon as he finished the thought, he spotted a pair of riders emerging in front of them from the other side of a ridge. Both held the reigns of a spare horse, green capes flowed behind them, emblazoned with blue and silver wings.</p><p>Reiner froze, a gasp hung on the edge of his tongue. A running titan was quiet, they had to have been noticed. He could see one of the riders tracking them with his eyes. He had raised a stubby looking gun into the air, while the was riding directly at them.</p><p>A giant hand lifted Reiner into the air, and without hesitation Annie threw her comrade straight at the rider with the gun. The world spun around Reiner and the next instant he felt his body crash into something someone. Both Reiner and his target crashed into the ground. For a moment Reiner lay still feeling so dizzy he could throw up. There was a throbbing pain in his shoulder, head and ancles.</p><p>A strange sound caught Reiner’s attention, it reminded him of a flamethrower the second before ignition… a stream of gas. He glanced up to see all four horses scattering around the female titan, and the second rider, wielding swords in both hands, sailing through the air towards a stunned Annie.</p><p>Reiner tried to stand through the pain and instantly found an arm rooting himself in place. He turned to face a set of leery eyes looking down on him from almost a foot above his own. One muscular arm held him in place, another brandished a long boxy blade that came to a point so sharp Reiner couldn’t make it out. Twelve year old Reiner swallowed up at the fully grown man who had at least a hundred pounds on him.</p><p>“What the hell are you doing out here, kid?” the soldier asked.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. A Drop in the Ocean</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fighting titans is one thing. But now the warriors have to fight soldiers, and flying ones at that! Even devils are humans. Are the warriors really able to fight their way to the walls? Are these children truly prepared for the atrocities their mission requires of them?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Bertholdt looked out from the female titan’s left hand. She was setting him on her shoulder to free both hands, while taking a wild swing at the airborne soldier with her right. The soldier spun through the air, effortlessly dodging out of the way of her attack. A grappling hook sunk into the female titan’s upper back, only a few feet beneath where Bertholdt stood. It had traveled so fast he hadn’t seen it move.</p><p>Annie tried to turn but the soldier was already behind her, speeding up and homing in on the nape of her neck, twin blades at the ready. Wide eyed, Bertholdt realized the soldier’s path would cross where he stood. Annie seemed to have been completely blindsided by the agility of this flying man. <em>I’m her last line of defense.</em></p><p>Bertholdt tightened his jaw and clenched his fist before he stepped off the Annie’s shoulder. His feet flailed in the air, the second before his body crashed into her attacker. He punched the soldier’s nose, loosing a stream of blood. One of the blades slammed into Annie’s back at an odd angle shattering into metallic fragments, and the other sunk deep into Bertholdt’s chest. He felt a loud hissing sound as air and blood flowed into his lungs.</p><p>The blade left his chest and he could feel his chest filling with fluid. Bertholdt fell away from the flying soldier who continued soaring around the female titan. The world turned black as he hit the ground.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Reiner starred up the soldier, mouth open like a guppy fish. Fortunately for Reiner the other soldier called out to his comrade, ending the pressure for him to think of a reply. What was unfortunate, was what the soldier said.</p><p>“They are with the titan! Kill them!” the soldier who had been attacking Annie yelled. Reiner watched the airborne man land gracefully on the grass even as blood streaking down from a broken nose. He backed away from Annie’s female titan which tried to step on him.</p><p>The closer soldier still held Reiner in a vice like grip, and he tossed him onto the ground. The blade was positioned to stab him in the eye. Reiner swung his forearm around, catching the side of the blade and knocking it away from his head. The thin tempered steel missed his skull by an inch and broke against the rock hard ground. Shards made deep gashes across his arm and fist. One piece sunk into his eye, making his head spun, but he felt no pain. His whole body buzzed with a dizzying amount of adrenaline.</p><p>Fighting inside a titan felt like a dream. Everything was muted and strangely removed, like a dream or watching something happen through a layer of water. But now this was his own body being slashed open, and every one of his senses felt overloaded. The soldier’s right arm pressed down on Reiner so hard that he heard the snap of his collarbone, while his left reached for another blade with his other hand. The soldier’s eyes turned away from him for a moment.</p><p>In the fleeting distraction, Reiner took a shard of the blade in each hand and drove them into the chest of the soldier. He jolted like he had been struck by lightning, and Reiner had pulled the blades back out and wedged them in again before the soldier had recovered. The hand pulled away from his collarbone in a desperate attempt to stop the assault, but Reiner kept stabbing. Tears streaking down his face, hands trembling, the metal cutting so deep into his own hand he could feel it sitting against the bone in his palm. He stabbed the chest, arms, and face, anywhere he could.</p><p>The man’s body rolled to the side. Reiner’s blurry vision turned black, but he continued driving the two pieces of metal forwards as long as they hit resistance.</p><p>“Reiner!”</p><p>He froze, the blade shrapnel still in his hands. His vision slowly returned. His hands were completely shredded and unrecognizable. He knelt over a patch of broken and bloodied ground. The soldier’s body lay beside him, motionless. <em>How much time passed?</em> Reiner looked over to see Annie, fresh titan marks under her eyes, but the female titan was only steam.</p><p>“It’s over, Reiner,” she said.</p><p>Her voice was calm, containing no trace of either relief or remorse. He nodded, and the opened his hands. The weapons stuck to his steaming palms, so he had to shake them free before they clattered to the ground. He felt a strange gurling inside his left eye. He blinked repeatedly and his eye spat out a thin piece of metal.</p><p>Reiner shuddered, and turned to Annie, surveying the field. There was a massive splotch of blood and broken parts on the ground. “You got the other one?”</p><p>Annie nodded. “But I underestimated him first. He would have killed me if Bertholdt didn’t step forwards.”</p><p>Reiner’s heart dropped. His eyes caught, Bertholdt, wrapped in one of the soldier’s green capes, with the wings. <em>Not Bertholdt too, no…</em> He slowly made his way over to the body, his lips trembled as he asked, “Is he…?”</p><p>“He’s alive for now,” Annie replied. “I tied it in the cloak to slow some of the bleeding until it healed. The wound looked so bad, I thought he might bleed out, but there’s steam. While there’s steam, he’s not all the way gone.”</p><p>Reiner nodded again. He could see the thinnest trickle of steam rising up beneath the cape. He put his head in his hands and turned away. He could see Annie’s eyes remained fixed on the wound. On that steam.</p><p>“I’m not a coward, Reiner. I was worried about something like this when I said we should end the mission.”</p><p>Annie’s words struck deep. Reiner felt his body tremble. <em>Is Bertholdt’s life worth the mission?</em> He drew an unsteady breath.</p><p>“I worried about something like this too, Annie. I told Magath that I would finish the mission, even if it’s just me,” Reiner said, voice getting steadier with each word. “I meant that.”</p><p>“I felt sick to my stomach when I thought Bertholdt had died.” Annie’s voice was soft, uncharacteristically weak. “Just like when I thought you died. Just like when Marcel died. I never want to feel that way again. If he dies, I am going home, Reiner. You can do whatever you want.”</p><p>“I understand.” Reiner said. He opened his mouth again, hesitantly to speak. “Did you feel something when you… when you killed the soldier?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Annie replied. “I did.”</p><p>Reiner took a deep breath. “It felt the same to me. Not the same feeling, but the same… emotion.”</p><p>“What do you mean?”</p><p>“Watching Marcel die, and killing…” Reiner gestured in the direction of the body, he couldn’t stand to look at it. He knew how mutilated it was. “I felt guilt both times, more than anything else. I killed Marcel, I killed <em>him</em>, and… I may have Bertholdt too.”</p><p>Annie laughed. It sounded harsh and grating. “Well we’d better get used to killing. You know what our orders are. This blood, all of this blood so far… is just a drop in the ocean, compared to what is expected of us.”</p><p>Reiner swallowed. But before he had time to process Annie’s words, he heard a sudden gasp for air. Bertholdt’s face turned purple and he rolled over. He began hacking up blood from deep inside him. Reiner and Annie both rushed to his side. Annie pulled him a little more upright, and Reiner dabbed the blood away from his mouth with his sleeve. After a moment of coughing, Bertholdt collapsed back onto the ground.</p><p>Annie untied the bandage around the wound revealing healed flesh. Reiner felt Bertholdt’s forehead. He was burning hot, and his body had gone limp again, eyes tightly closed. <em>He is healing so quickly. He just needs to rest some more.</em></p><p>“You can carry us to the walls, Reiner. We should be there by nightfall,” Annie said. “I can show you the way. Come morning, Bertholdt will have all his strength back.”</p><p>Reiner took a few steps away from the others and looked down at his blood-soaked hand. <em>I am the armored titan, and I have a mission to finish.</em> Reiner bit his hand.</p><p>
  <em>***</em>
</p><p>
  <em>This part was a little short this week, but it was pretty intense.  Next chapter will probably be the finale (though there maaaay be one more we'll see).</em>
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  <em>Tune in next week for the story's conclusion "Chapter 8: The Other Wall",  on Saturday noon EDT. As always, thanks for reading!</em>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. The Other Wall</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In the final full chapter, the warriors have done the hard part of traveling a relatively short distance, now all is left is eradicating humanity within the walls! Are they up for the challenge?</p><p>Also, don't miss the short epilogue showing the makings of Annie's ring!</p>
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    <p>The armored titan carried Annie and Bertholdt towards Wall Maria and their mission. Annie pointed the way for him, and Reiner moved swiftly. Most of the pure titan’s they saw couldn’t keep up and there weren’t enough to swarm him either. Without having to sprint, the armor titan maintained its form for the whole afternoon before Reiner had to shift back. The female titan carried them until nightfall, when they arrived at the wall.</p><p>Reiner was relieved to have made it, and even more relieved to have not come across anymore of those flying men along the way. He looked up at the massive sleek white stone that glowed in the moonlight. Even though he could not see the top of the wall, he was speechless at the scale of the wall. The true Wall Maria left him feeling all the stupider for mixing it up with the dinky harbor. Annie shifted out of the female titan as soon as they arrived.</p><p>Bertholdt appeared to have fully recovered, but he remained silent for the entirety of the trip, so it was hard for Reiner to tell exactly how he was feeling. Judging by his face, Bertholdt was anxious.</p><p>Annie grabbed a bite of rations, leaned against a tree and closer her eyes. Reiner knew it was a good idea to try and rest, but it was so early, and his mind was spinning. He found a comfortable place to set his head down, but he knew he would hardly sleep tonight.</p><p>“Reiner?” Bertholdt said, his voice was tentative. Soft enough that it wouldn’t have woken him if he had already fallen asleep.</p><p>“What is it, Bert?” Reiner replied.</p><p>“I don’t know what we are going to face in there. It’s possible we die tomorrow, having done nothing,” Bertholdt said.</p><p>Reiner blinked. “I think that was possible at each leg of our journey. This one isn’t any different.”</p><p>“That’s true.”</p><p>“I just try not to think too much about it. Just keep moving forwards,” Reiner said.</p><p>“Thanks.”</p><p>Reiner closed his eyes, but he could feel that sleep was many hours away.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>Bertholdt woke up to Annie standing above him. His eyes were so heavy he couldn’t open them all the way, and his ribs hurt for some odd reason. Annie kicked him in the ribcage, and he suddenly understood why.</p><p>“I’m getting up! I’m getting up!” Bertholdt yelled angrily. “That really hurts.”</p><p>“What would really hurt would be getting hit by a cannon in human form because we are sticking around in eyeshot of the wall in broad daylight,” Annie remarked.</p><p>Bertholdt pulled himself upright and rubbed his eyes. He could see the sun peaking above the horizon and let out a long groan.</p><p>“Why do you shift every five minutes when you sleep? You looked like a starfish when I woke you,” Annie said.</p><p>“Why do you watch me sleeping?” Berthold shot back. Annie turned away, silently.</p><p>“Good morning, Bert!”</p><p>Bertholdt’s tired eyes, only open a crack turned to see a beaming Reiner who looked as if he just got back from a spa. He mumbled one word back. “Morning.”</p><p>“Ready for the mission?”</p><p>“I fell asleep during twilling and woke up at sunrise so I might have gotten half an hour of actual sleep,” Bertholdt said. “If that wasn’t clear, then no, no I am not ready.”</p><p>Bertholdt’s stomach rumbled. He ate a full breakfast worth of rations while being egged on to hurry by Annie. He rubbed his eyes and stretched for a minute. His hands twitched even as he tried to stay calm.</p><p>“I’m ready,” Bertholdt said.</p><p>It had felt like half an hour since he’d woken, but Annie’s sigh sounded like she thought it a lifetime. Reiner and Annie scurried away, and he bit his hand. Nothing happened. Bertholdt blinked. He took a deep breath and hit his hand, harder this time. Nothing. He paced back and forth a few times, glancing at the wall to see if there was anyone had spotted him. His stomach was only tying itself in more knots, but he tried to calm himself again. His right hand hurt so he switched to his left. He starred at the gatehouse with all of his being and got ready to bite. <em>My goal is kicking down the gate!</em></p><p>“Bertholdt!” Annie hissed. He looked over and expected her to be frustrated with him. Instead she was frantically waving her hands and beckoning him to the bush her and Reiner were hiding inside. Bertholdt frowned, and then he heard it. Hundreds of hooves stomping into the ground, muffled but getting closer. He sprinted to their hiding place and held still.</p><p> Bertholdt waited anxiously, and a broad column of riders, wearing the same green capes as the flying soldier who attacked them. There were more than he could count and they each carried the strange gas-powered mechanism and the twin razor sharp blades. Bertholdt swallowed. His leg jiggled in place as he waited for the soldiers to pass. He waited until the gate closed behind them and peered in all directions just to make sure.</p><p>Annie pushed Bertholdt out of the bush before he worked up the courage to step into the open again. He ducked down and gingerly stepped forwards. The confidence he had built up was shot, and he found himself looking over his shoulder every few minutes. Someone in the bush—he knew it was Annie—coughed so loud it made Bertholdt jump. He rubbed his hands together and cleared his throat.</p><p>“Transform, kick down the gatehouse. Simple as that,” Bertholdt said to himself. <em>There were a lot of soldiers walking by just now. If they are still near the gate… could they kill me?</em> He glanced at his hand and found it was becoming quite clammy. <em>Perhaps I should wait a minute and let them head further away. But what if we are spotted?</em></p><p>Beads of sweat trickled down Bertholdt’s forehead and he wicked them away. He rolled his shoulders and tried to clear his mind before biting down on his hand again.</p><p>“What’s wrong, Bertholdt?” Reiner called out from the bushes.</p><p>“You know what, I’m feeling a lot of pressure right now from both of you,” Bertholdt turned around. “Could you like turn away and not say anything and not aggressively cough?”</p><p>“Oh great, he’s having performance issues!” Annie grumbled.</p><p>“That it makes it sounds like…” Bertholdt replied, flustered.</p><p>“What?” Reiner asked.</p><p>“He’s trying to get big but can’t,” Annie said. “Does that sound better, Bert?”</p><p>“Oh,” Reiner said.</p><p>“That’s even worse!” Bertholdt glared at Annie.</p><p><em>If I can’t transform, we will be caught and die.</em> Bertholdt turned back to the wall. He bit his hand again. He felt himself start to panic. <em>Annie’s going to kill me! Can’t we just say we failed the mission? No, we can’t go back to Magath unless someone else dies… wait, Annie might actually kill me! </em>Bertholdt whirled around and jumped as he saw someone standing right behind him.</p><p>“I think I can help,” Reiner said, a gentle smile on his face. Reiner leaned in and gave Bertholdt a kiss.</p><p>Even though it only lasted a moment, Bertholdt felt a calm washing over him. It was a physical sign that Reiner cared deeply about him, even while he pushed them forwards in the mission. He felt a single tear forming in his eye. Despite all the pain in his past, despite all of his nervous and awkward ways, despite what he was about to do, know that anyone cared about him in that way made him feel emotional.</p><p><em>Maybe after this whole thing is over, we could…</em> Bertholdt found himself thinking as he starred at Reiner’s happy face. But cleared his mind. <em>I can’t think about that yet. The mission comes first.</em></p><p>“Step back, Reiner,” Berthold said, hands still shaking as he thought about what he was about to do. Reiner returned to the bush with Annie. Bertholdt didn’t want to look over and give her a chance to make fun of him. His confidence was back. He bit his hand, and this time there was the explosion and lightning.</p><p>The colossal titan looked down on the fifty meter wall. Only a few steps before he could see over the wall. The tiny, ant like people all looked up to watch him. He could hear muffled screams so far beneath him. <em>So, this is why it’s called the God of Destruction.</em> He raised his foot and felt a pang inside his chest. He knew what would happen to them, as tiny as they appeared, as evil as they may have been, they were still people. Then he thought about home, and the army of green caped flying soldiers that would swarm him if he hesitated. He thought about Annie and Reiner. He swung his foot.</p><p>The gatehouse crumbled from the impact. Bertholdt felt the explosion shaking the ground and watched a shockwave rippling through the rest of the wall. Shrapnel rained down on the nearby houses. Then came the explosion of pain. Bertholdt felt the largest stubbed toe experienced in entirety of human history. He closed his eyes and bit his lip. Glancing down, he spotted the armored titan running through the hole underneath him and began transforming back into a human. <em>Reiner and Annie can take it from here, screw this!</em> Bertholdt thought, wincing.</p><p>*          *          *</p><p>
  <em>One gatehouse later…</em>
</p><p>A mix of civilians and soldiers filled every inch of the river barge. The soldiers wore brown coats and had the same weapons as the ones they encountered outside the wall. The civilians were terrified, and the soldiers were not handling their fear much better. Reiner stayed on the upper deck, for the fresh air and to watch the countryside drifting peacefully past. A few titans followed alongside the boat for the first day, but they lost them at nightfall.</p><p>“It’s a good thing that titan can’t swim,” Bertholdt whispered eyeing a pair of titans descending on a village that didn’t seem to have any warning. “If that ever changes the whole world is screwed.”</p><p>“That’s true.” Reiner started laughing but found himself shuddering.</p><p>Reiner had watched one of the brown coated soldiers flying off the boat to try and warn an earlier village on their first day on the river. They were eaten, and none of the other soldiers left the boat since. Their death did nothing except leave Reiner with an unsettling question in his mind. <em>Is that something a devil would do?</em></p><p>They got a bite of food on their first and second days floating down the river, and it took three full days to travel the one hundred kilometers between Wall Maria and Wall Rose. By the end of the trip, Reiner was so hungry he was almost delirious. It felt like an eternity before they sailed into Wall Rose and the boat began to deboard on the other side.</p><p>A large crowd had gathered to watch them, including many from the boat in front scouring the faces for friends and relatives. Reiner moved at the exit to the boat where a pair of soldiers made sure everyone was coming off in an orderly manner. He began to strike up a conversation with one of the soldiers.</p><p>“We are just a couple kids from Shinigami district,” Reiner said.</p><p>“You mean Shiganshina?” the closer soldier asked, frowning.</p><p>“Yes!” Bertholdt said, hastily.</p><p>“We aren’t titans,” Reiner added. “And we certainly didn’t destroy the walls.”</p><p>Reiner could hear Bertholdt gasp and as he turned back, he saw Annie step away from him in the crowd. Bertholdt tried to force an uncomfortable laugh.</p><p>The soldier glanced over at his partner before turning back. After a long moment, he replied, “That’s good.”</p><p>“You’d certainly be the shortest titan I’ve ever seen,” the other soldier added, chuckling.</p><p>“It’s just I’ve been told I look like the armored titan, and I didn’t want there to be any confusion,” Reiner said.</p><p>“We should <em>really</em> get going! Our parents got on the barge in front of us and we don’t want them to be worried.” Bertholdt shoved Reiner through the crowd and on to the docking platform.</p><p>“Now you mention it, I can see it,” the second soldier said as they passed him. Bertholdt swore under his breath and kept them moving. The soldier called after them, “I think the armored titan has a few inches on you though!”</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ever wonder how Annie got her ring made? I did! This certainly wasn't how it actually happened but one can hope...</p>
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    <p><em>I saw Marcel get eaten,</em> Annie thought, watching passersby walking down the crowded streets. <em>He couldn’t transform because he couldn’t move his arms. That’s never going to happen to me.</em> She stepped into the road and made her way along. She saw the smith sign waving in the breeze a block ahead of her. A steady hammering got louder as she stepped into the store.</p><p>A man middle aged man with broad shoulders held a glowing red ax head with a pair of black iron tongs. He dunked the tongs into a bucket of water as she walked in and set it on the table. He wiped his brow off with a small towel and turned to his customer. “Can I help you?”</p><p>“I would like to order a custom ring,” Annie said.</p><p>“I’ve made rings before, but I don’t have any precious metals on hand,” the smith said, frowning. “I must confess I haven’t had a jewelry order since the wall fell.”</p><p>“The metal doesn’t matter. Something cheap and sturdy, iron or steel will do,” Annie replied.</p><p>“Alright. What would you like it to have?”</p><p>“It needs a spike. Something sharp you can pull out,” she said.</p><p>The smith narrowed his eyes. “Why?”</p><p>“What I use it for is none of your business,” Annie said, firmly.</p><p>“These are dangerous times, young miss. I don’t want to make a ring that could conceal a weapon and hear it was used in an assassination.” He folded his arms. “I don’t usually say this, but I need to know what it’s for or I won’t make it for you.”</p><p>“It’s for…” Annie paused. “Self-defense.”</p><p>“Why the hesitation? I can sell you a knife of a club if you want to protect yourself,” the man said, shaking his head. “But a ring with a hidden spike in it sounds like its straight out of a conspiracy that I don’t want to be a part of.”</p><p>“It’s for bedroom stuff,” Annie blurted.</p><p>“What?” The smith screwed up his face and stepped back. “No, actually, don’t tell me. I really don’t want to know. I’ll make the ring for you, just don’t say anymore. Please.”</p><p>“Good.”</p><p>He told her the price and gingerly collected the coins as if she had the plague before stepping away again. “Come back in three days, and I’ll have it for you.”</p><p>As she walked away, she could hear him mutter to himself. “So that’s what kids are up to these days. Did <em>not</em> want to know that.”</p>
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